Highland Honor by Hannah Howell Page B

Non , David. I will stay with Sir Murray,” she replied, speaking in English so as not to exclude Nigel from the discussion, knowing that was what her cousin had been trying to do. “I chose this path and I will stay on it.”
    â€œI swear you will not be treated in the same shameful manner you have been,” David replied in English, his reluctance to use the language clear in his deep voice.
    â€œI believe you. That does not matter.”
    â€œAre you certain you are not allowing hurt feelings to guide your steps?”
    She smiled briefly and shrugged. “I will not deny that those feelings are there, but they do not lead me. This is for the best, believe me.” Gisele could tell by the dark look on David’s face that he thought she and Nigel were already lovers, but was probably not sure who to blame for that. After all, she was no longer some naive virgin. “We have a good plan. You need not worry about me.”
    â€œNot worry? How many times must I say it? You are traveling all over the land dressed as a boy with a man none of us know. Do you have no thought to how you are blackening your name?”
    Gisele laughed—a short, bitter sound. “Blackening my name? For a year now even some of my own family has decried me as a murderer, a woman who not only killed her husband but mutilated him. I doubt what I do now could stain my precious name any deeper than that.” She took a deep breath to steady herself. “Sir Nigel is taking me to a safe place. That is what is needed now.”
    â€œWe could find you a safe place, cousin,” David said, but his deep voice carried a hint of uncertainty.
    â€œ Non , you cannot, and we both know it. The DeVeaux watch every member of our family very closely. What happened to poor Guy is hard proof of that. There is nowhere amongst you that I can truly hide. Whomever I abide with I will put in danger. Do you truly wish to pull our whole family into a war with the DeVeaux? A war that could easily set you against the king himself? I did not think so,” she murmured when he frowned.
    â€œBut, now that we have come to our senses we can do nothing else except help you, or we risk our honor.”
    â€œThen do help me. Find out who truly killed my husband. Now is the perfect time to do that. All DeVeau eyes are turned upon me, and all of their strength and interest is aimed at me. That should give someone a very good chance of discovering exactly what happened to my husband.”
    â€œIt will not be an easy task,” David muttered as he rubbed his chin.
    â€œ Non , it will not be. If it were easy I would have found out the truth myself by now. I have had little chance to ferret out the real murderer myself, and now that the DeVeaux offer a hefty purse for my miserable head I will have no time at all. I have no time for anything except running and hiding.”
    â€œThat is no life for a woman.”
    â€œ Non , it is not, so find out who really cut up my loathsome worm of a husband and free me from it.”
    She waited with some apprehension as David considered her words. He could cause her a great deal of trouble if he refused to accept her decision, and she felt she had more than enough to deal with already. Although a part of her was still not completely sure she could trust Nigel, she knew she could not leave him. Every instinct told her to hold firmly to the path she was on, but she did not want to push away the family that had finally come to her aid.
    â€œI do not like this,” David muttered, sending Nigel a brief, hard glare before tightly hugging Gisele. “I will honor your wishes. Stay with the man, and your family shall set its mind and heart to getting you exonerated.”
    â€œYe made the wise choice,” Nigel said as he tugged Gisele to his side.
    â€œI do not believe I was given much of a choice at all,” David replied, fixing his gaze on Gisele after one brief glare toward Nigel.